Legal Question in Family Law in Philippines

Re: marriage contract

Whether a marriage is valid does not depend on the existence of a marriage contract.

Even in its absence a valid marriage can exist.

Executive Order No. 209 (As amended by E.O. No. 227) (Requisites of Marriage) requires for a valid marriage compliance with the essential and formal requisites of marriage. In its Article 2 it provides that, " No marriage shall be valid, unless these essential requisites are present:

Legal capacity of the contracting parties who must be a male and a female; and

Consent freely given in the presence of the solemnizing officer."

However, Article 3 of the said Executive Order also provides that, "The formal requisites of marriage are:

Authority of the solemnizing officer;

A valid marriage license except in the cases provided for in Chapter 2 of this Title; and

A marriage ceremony which takes place with the appearance of the contracting parties before the solemnizing officer and their personal declaration that they take each other as husband and wife in the presence of not less than two witnesses of legal age.

Simply stated, a marriage is valid if it complies withe the foregoing requisites even if there is no marriage contract.However, the marriage certificate is the best evidence to prove the existance that both parties contracted marriage on a particular date and place.